Dear to my Heart

Guest Writer: Mommy

 

You probably all recognize this picture from our Valentine's Day Post from this year. It was taken by a very close friend of ours. She had seen something similar and told me she knew she had to try it because it represented our family so well. And it truly does. The Heart, the symbol of Love, would be our Family Crest if I could create one myself. Now let me tell you all the story why. 

Almost ten years ago I was an eighteen year old, college freshman, in a rigorous and intense nursing program. There was no time for fun, just study and work. Since this program was so intense the only people I was ever really around, even in my gen. ed. courses, were other nursing students. This put a major damper on my social life. But there was this one nursing student that was pretty cool, and I will admit I had a rather large crush on him. He sat by me often in class (since I always arrived early and he usually arrived seconds before the professor walked in). There were study groups that we sometimes saw each other at. And most importantly we sat at the same lab table in Microbiology Lab (nothing is more romantic that looking through some microscope at proliferating bacteria.) Now, being the incredibly, painfully, shy person that I am, I never let on that my Heart went a flutter every time he was around.

Nine years ago on Valentine's Day our nursing program went on an overnight trip to the state capital to take part in some Healthy Heart program. On the bus ride over, one of my friends and I sat and studied, or rather chatted, and she then told me something that broke my Heart. He had recently started asking her out a lot. She wasn't sure exactly where things were going but talked about how he was such a great guy. Then she asked my advice on what she should do. I wanted to tell her that she should tell him that she wanted nothing to do with him and that he should ask me out, but I didn't. Valentine's Day came and he obviously hung around my friend and I a lot, but I knew that I stood no chance next to her, so I just had fun. Two weeks later, he asked me out on our first date...and that was that.

Eight years ago, one year later on Valentine's Day, we were married. The day was filled with Hearts and Red Roses and was a beautiful day to have our Love sealed together for eternity.

Now fast forward a few years. Five years ago this month we found out our first child would be born with serious problems. Some of which involved her heart. That in essence broke ours. We knew she would need surgery within the first few months of life to correct the problem but were not prepared for what truly lay ahead. When she was born they were able to get a good look at her heart and realized the problem was much more extreme and would need immediate correction. She was only a week and half old and probably only 5 1/2 pounds when she underwent her first heart surgery. We had been warned over and 0ver that it would horrible. But when we saw her after surgery, our hearts broke again. Five and half months later, in February, we had many dramatic ups and downs and one night we got the call that shattered what remained of our hearts. Again she needed major surgery and she needed it NOW. But something different happened this time, the surgery that mended her heart allowed for her to heal ours. We spent our Fourth Anniversary celebrating the Love we shared for each other at the bedside of our baby girl.

Are you beginning to see why Love and its symbol, the Heart, is so important to us? Every Valentine's Day, and the whole month of February for that matter, we now celebrate True Love and the symbol of the Heart. But as you may be aware the last year and half has been hard on our Marvelous Michelle. We have had all sorts of wild, crazy, and pretty darn amazing adventures.  Our family and the amount of Love that fills our home has grown exponentially! But as we expected some new storms have been brewing and are now becoming imminent.

Michelle is needing heart surgery again.

The details have not been completely worked out. Michelle's Pediatric Cardiologist is contacting and working with the cardiac team that have saved her twice before to determine what and when. So we sit. And as the ache and pain fills our Hearts once again, we remember that no matter what, we have our Love that binds us together. And the more we Love the stronger we grow.

(And for those who need a good cry please go here, right above the first picture in this person's post is an icon to play a song. The father of this little boy who also has a Heart defect wrote this song, and...well...it touches my Heart.)